


Here For You

by newsies_of_corona



Series: Alchemy Brothers AU- A Series of Oneshots [3]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Nightmares, Villain Varian, You have been warned...., emotional angst, hugo really goes through it during this one, just when you think it's soft...it's not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-12
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:48:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26972431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/newsies_of_corona/pseuds/newsies_of_corona
Summary: What happens when your nightmares become reality?
Relationships: alchemy bros - Relationship
Series: Alchemy Brothers AU- A Series of Oneshots [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1918906
Comments: 3
Kudos: 21





	Here For You

_“Hugo...”_

The chilling voice sounded familiar. _Too_ familiar. The blond alchemist shook his head and adjusted to his surroundings. He seemed to be in his and Varian’s lab, but the atmosphere was...different. The dingy space was covered floor to ceiling with increasingly noticeable dust. Not one surface or piece of equipment was spared from the filth, and the sight made Hugo’s skin crawl.

_“Hugo...”_

There was that voice again. The echoey nature of it made it hard to pinpoint who’s it was, but Hugo was almost positive he knew; and that realization only deepened the pit forming in his stomach.

“Var-Varian?” He asked, timidly into the darkness.

The sardonic laughter that rang out into the emptiness couldn’t have been anyone else’s. Hugo staggered backward, but suddenly, a silhouette of the boy flashed in front of him. Hugo blinked once, and there Varian was standing directly in his view, a twisted and sadistic smile resting on his face.

“You know, I’m not sure what’s more _pathetic,_ ” Varian echoed. “You...or the ridiculous idea that you think that someone could actually _care_ about you.”

Hugo’s breath got caught in his throat. He couldn’t speak; couldn’t move; he was simply frozen.

Varian walked around the lab slowly, tipping over various flasks and beakers as he went.

“Face it, _Hugo._ You’ll never truly fit in here. Me, dad... _we’re_ a family.”

He walked back over to Hugo, staring him down.

“And you were brought in solely out of _pity._ ”

The solutions spilled onto the floor and fused together, morphing into a solid, rusty orange hue. The amber grew and spiked out all around Hugo, until it reached its peak, dividing the room and separating himself from Varian.

The deadly substance tore through a sleeve of Hugo’s clothes, making him reel back in surprise and pain. The cut was deeper than he expected, and it made his entire left arm sore. The pain traveled to his head as he collapsed on the ground He was still too shocked to cry, but his eyes burned almost as much as his head.

The image of Varian slowly faded into the darkness, but the amber continued to grow.

“He’s not coming back, Hugo.”

This time it was a different voice he heard; even more familiar than Varian’s. His head shot up, and suddenly he was face to face with... _himself._ Hugo scooted back to the wall as another shard of amber shot out and cut his other sleeve. He winced and grabbed his right arm, the room seeming to close in on him.

The phantom version of himself loomed over him, straight-faced without a hint of emotion.

“You might as well give up while you still have the chance.”

The boy’s head started spinning as the pain became more severe, the words lingering in his mind...

———

Hugo’s eyes shot open, and he sat up in his bed, taking slow, shallow breaths. The tears came, as they always did, and they wet the sheets around him. He checked his arms for the cuts, but they were completely unharmed. It was just a dream.

“A _nightmare,_ ” Hugo corrected between his sobs. He hugged himself, slowly rocking back and forth, causing the bed to creak.

The sound traveled over to Varian’s side of the room, causing the boy to stir. His eyes fluttered slightly and he rolled over on his side. He saw a very distraught looking Hugo, curled into a ball on his bed and obviously crying. Varian immediately stood up and walked over to him, his feet making the floorboards creak.

Hugo heard him coming and tensed, having to remind himself again that it was just a nightmare. He scooted over to make room for Varian who promptly sat down next to him.

“Another nightmare?” Varian asked in a hushed tone.

Hugo could only nod miserably before laying his head on his knees.

Varian’s face fell; he hated seeing Hugo like this. Mostly because there was nothing he could really do to fix it.

...But he could still _try._

Varian gingerly placed a hand on Hugo’s shoulder.

“Do you...want to talk about it?”

Hugo perked up slightly to look at Varian. This was his brother. His brother who _did_ care about him. He could never act like...that.

Hugo closed his eyes and took a deep, slow breath, trying to shake the images in his mind. But they just kept coming back. Maybe talking about it would do him some good.

“I...I was in our lab,” Hugo started in a voice barely above a whisper. “And I saw... _you._ ”

Varian quickly retracted his hand as his stomach dropped. Hugo had a nightmare about... _him?_

Hugo noticed Varian’s tenseness and quickly backtracked.

“But it wasn’t you, of course. I know you’d never hurt me like that.”

Varian’s eyes widened and he backed up further.

“I _hurt_ you?”

“No, no, it was just...what you said,” Hugo recovered. “In my dream, I mean.”

“Oh...”

Varian moved closer to him again and lowered his voice. “What-what was that?”

Hugo’s face darkened as he stared at the floor.

“That...you didn’t actually care. And that dad only adopted me out of-“

Hugo’s eyes filled with tears again as he tried to get the words out.

“Out-out of... _pity._ ” He laid his head on his knees again, continuing to rock back and forth.

Varian drew in a sharp breath and tried to find the words to comfort Hugo. His brother’s nightmares were always so...real.

“Hugo...you know that’s not true,” Varian began, urging his brother to look up at him.

“I’m your brother. And it’s not because of pity; it’s because I _care_ about you. I care about you more than I’ve cared about anyone, and-and dad does too.”

Hugo managed to look up at Varian, his eyes still bloodshot with tears.

“I mean it, Hugo,” Varian went on in a serious tone. “I-I don’t know what I’d do if you weren’t here, heh.”

A genuine smile played at the corners of Hugo’s mouth. “You’d probably drive _yourself_ crazy with your nerd facts instead of me,” Hugo joked under his breath, chuckling a little.

“Hey, I heard that!” Varian laughed along. The lightheartedness only lasted for a measly moment, however, before the mood shifted downward again.

“Whatever you saw in that dream...it wasn’t true,” Varian continued. “And it can never be true because whatever happens-“

He moved his hand to Hugo’s shoulder again in a comforting manner.

_“I’ll always be here for you.”_

Hugo’s tears started to come back, but this time they were happier. That was really all he needed to hear right now. Just that his brother was truly _there_. He stopped hugging himself to let Varian in. He knew he could always go to him for comfort. Hugo scooted closer to his brother and wrapped him in a hug.

“Thanks, Hairstripe,” he whispered.

Varian was startled at first; up until this point he had usually been the one to initiate affection when it came to Hugo, but this was a very welcome change. He was relieved that he was able to help, and he gratefully hugged his brother back.

“Heh, anytime.”

———

The memories hit Hugo like a brick.

How could everything suddenly be so different in the span of _one year?_ That was back when he still had a family, and when his brother still _cared._ Now, the terrifying nightmare seems closer to reality than the heartwarming moment that came after it.

Hugo sits in the same curled up position, rocking back and forth. But this time...he’s alone. No one is there to comfort him even though the person who _used_ to be there is in clear view. Hugo doesn’t look up, but he can sense that Varian is practically glaring at him. In the span of a single year, they had gone from brothers...to _enemies._

The blond shivers and backs up further onto his bed, hitting the wall of his cell. It all happened so fast; the amber, Varian’s turn, and now prison where he’s been for _three months._ The only things keeping him going are the memories. The memories of how things used to be. The joy that they both felt before everything started spiraling, and especially the care that they had for each other. It was all _real,_ and he knew for a fact that those feelings couldn’t just go away overnight. Varian’s heart is hardened for the time being, but Hugo keeps the hope that deep down, his brother is still in there.

Hugo props his head up and regrettably looks in the direction of Varian’s cell, quoting to himself what his brother had said to him a year ago.

_“I’ll always be here for you.”_

———

The young convict is also leaning against the wall of his cell, unable to sleep. Along with Hugo, Varian’s mind is being plagued with memories that he tries to push away, but for the first time, something is actually stronger than his anger. He holds his head and groans. He doesn’t _want_ to remember the meaningful moments he shared with Hugo. Mostly because he knows that he _does_ still care about him. Even after everything, he’d still be devastated if something happened to his brother...

But he doesn’t want to care either. It just gets in the way of what he wants most: revenge. He tries to think of new plots to break out of jail, schemes to attack Corona, _anything_ but those dreaded memories, but they refuse to leave.

Varian shifts his position as his mood grows somber. He doesn’t _really_ want revenge. He just wants his dad back; he wants _Hugo_ back. As much as he tries to deny it, he misses his brother. But he’s gone too far to turn back now.

The sadness passes and his eyebrows furrow again. He needs to stick to his goal: break out of jail with Andrew, enact his vengeance plot on Corona...and somehow ignore Hugo the entire time.

Varian turns around to face Andrew’s cell, forgetting that it’s also Hugo’s. For a brief second, he locks eyes with his brother, but he quickly turns away. Whatever happened a year ago is completely over. Hugo basically betrayed his trust just like everyone else, and that is something he _wouldn’t_ forgive. There’s no way that their bond could ever go back to what it was.

Hugo sighs sadly after seeing Varian turn away so abruptly and turns around himself. The glimmer of hope he still has is starting to fade. It was a disheartening feeling; knowing that Varian wanted nothing to do with him anymore.

Hugo subconsciously rolls up his sleeves and looks at his arms. They were still unharmed, but this time the pain is _real._

A new quote comes to Hugo’s mind as he pushes his sleeves back down. It was something distantly familiar, almost as if he had heard it in a dream. He grits his teeth and hangs his head, whispering to himself, “Maybe I should just give up while I still have the chance.”

**Author's Note:**

> Well, I hope you enjoyed! This is turning into a whole series, heh. Guaranteed, it will have a happy ending...eventually.


End file.
